Why Wailord is not worth using in Pokemon GO

Wailord, the Float Whale Pokemon, has been an addition to Pokemon GO since the introduction of other Pokemon originating from the Hoenn region. Costing a massive 400 Wailmer candy to evolve a Wailmer, many players might like to know if the gigantic Pokemon is worth all of the effort or if it just falls flat in Pokemon GO's Battle League.

What makes a Pokemon worth using requires more than just analyzing its stats. Pokemon that may not be good in PvP may be better at defending a gym or used in Raid Battles.

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Wailord in Pokemon GO: An analysis

Wailord is one of the biggest Pokemon players can see in the newest Pokemon Snap game for Nintendo Switch (Image via Nintendo)

Unfortunately, the only thing Wailord is good at is sitting in a gym. Not because it has great defenses or anything like that, its massive model just looks funny spinning in the gym Pokestop.

Wailord simply comes up short in every way compared to other Water-type Pokemon that require the same amount of effort, mainly Gyarados. While boasting a monstrous stamina stat of 347, it only has a frail defense stat of 87, leaving its massive HP pool unprotected and easily widdled down by Electric and Grass-type Pokemon like Raichu or Zarude.

Wailord's attack stat, while not being the worst, leaves a lot to be desired, especially for costing 400 candy from a Pokemon that is not very common in most areas. Sitting at a mediocre 175, Wailord will only be doing chip damage to the metagame's abundance of bulky Steel-type Pokemon.

In terms of a moveset, Wailord has Water Gun and Zen Headbutt for fast attacks. Water Gun is the best option as it is the fastest and receives the same type attack bonus from Wailord's Water typing.

There is no reason for players to run Zen Headbutt over Water Gun as it provides no useful coverage for Wailord. Even if Wailord had a great coverage fast attack, Wailord does not have the defenses to stay in against a Pokemon with an advantage over it.

Wailord and Magikarp have teamed up for the Unified Minds expansion of the trading card game in a tag team card exclusive to the expansion (Image via Pokemon Card Laboratory)

Surf, Blizzard, and Hyper Beam are Wailord's charged attacks in Pokemon GO. Surf is the best option as it deals the most damage. Blizzard is great for dealing with Grass-types if it was not on a Pokemon with Wailord's defenses. It is very likely Wailord will fall before it has the chance to use Blizzard.

Niantic could make a few changes to Wailord to improve it in Pokemon GO and even increase its presence in the metagame. While Pokemon in Pokemon GO tend to be truthful to their main series counterparts, Wailord feels weaker in Pokemon GO than in the main series.

Ways to improve Wailord would be to trade in some of that stamina stat for a slight boost in defense. 300 stamina and 134 defense would do Wailord much better and allow it to function more as a Water-type Snorlax.

In the main series, Wailord gets a lot of usage from its massive HP stat with access to the move Water Spout, which deals more damage based off of the amount of HP the user has. While this effect cannot be portrayed in Pokemon GO, Wailord's attack stat could better reflect its capabilities with a slight increase from 175 to 185 or 190.

Wailord's candy cost in Pokemon GO is also way too high for its current state. The excessive 400 could easily be brought down to a respectable 100 or even 50.

Though Wailord may be borderline unusable in its current state in Pokemon GO, players should not give up hope for our buoyant friend. With a small rework or adjustment, Wailord could run with the big boys in the Great League or even Ultra League.

Note: The article solely reflects the views of the writer.